Australian Markets Notably Lower

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is notably lower on Monday, reversing some of the gains in the previous session, following the mixed cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling below the 8,700.00 level, with weakness in energy and technology stocks, with a mixed performance in most other sectors.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 36.50 points or 0.42 percent to 8,693.30, after hitting a low of 8,673.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 32.20 points or 0.36 percent to 8,922.50. Australian stocks closed notably higher on Friday.

Among the major miners, Rio Tinto and BHP Group are edging down 0.2 percent each, while Fortescue is edging up 0.3 percent. Mineral Resources is flat.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy is edging down 0.3 percent, Woodside Energy is declining almost 2 percent and Santos is down almost 1 percent, while Origin Energy is edging up 0.2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is gaining more than 1 percent, Appen is edging up 0.4 percent and Xero is adding almost 1 percent, while Zip is edging down 0.4 percent and WiseTech Global is losing almost 2 percent.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Northern Star Resources and Resolute Mining are edging down 0.1 to 0.4 percent each, while Genesis Minerals is down almost 1 percent and Newmont is losing more than 1 percent. Evolution Mining is gaining almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is losing almost 1 percent. National Australia Bank is declining almost 2 percent and Westpac is edging down 0.2 percent, while ANZ Banking is edging up 0.3 percent. In other news, shares in Accent Group are slipping more than 6 percent after it downgraded its earnings guidance amid softer trading conditions. It is also assisting with an investigation by the corporate regulator following the downgrade.

Shares in a2 Milk are tumbling more than 12 percent after it launched a voluntary recall of three batches of its US-labelled a2 Platinum infant formula on detecting cereulide, a toxin linked to foodborne illness, in products sold in America.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.721 on Monday.

On Wall Street, stocks gave back ground over the course of the trading day on Friday after showing a strong move to the upside early in the session. The major averages pulled back well off their highs of the session, with the Dow sliding into negative territory.

The major averages eventually ended the day mixed. While the Dow fell 152.87 points or 0.3 percent to 49,499.27, the S&P 500 rose 21.11 points or 0.3 percent to 7,320.12 and the Nasdaq advanced 222.13 points or 0.9 percent to 25,144.44.

Meanwhile, most major European markets were closed for May Day, but U.K. stocks showed a modest move to the downside. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent.

Crude oil prices plunged on Friday on hopes for an end to hostilities even as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, continuing to disrupt crude oil supply. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery was down $3.28 or 3.28 percent at $101.79 per barrel.